PhotoBlog - bicycle

21
Feb
2012
9:42am, EST
Portland "gladiators" battle in chariot bike wars
Rick Bowmer / AP
Dan Oviatt, known as "Captain America," rides his mini bike during a three-day Mini Bike Winter Olympics on Sunday, Feb.19, in Portland, Ore. "Zoobombers" are known for riding pint-sized kids' bikes at breakneck speed down steep streets in Portland. (
Rick Bowmer / AP
Chariot riders battle in a "Ben Hur"-like chariot race at Chariot Wars during a three-day Mini Bike Winter Olympics Saturday, Feb.18, in Portland, Ore. Armed, variously, with all manner of foam-padded apparatus, at least five teams did battle on Saturday under gray skies for the pleasure of hoisting a three-foot-tall, homemade skull-bearing piece of welded junk, called the "Ben Hurt" trophy.
Rick Bowmer / AP
Chariot rider Jon Penfold drinks from the "Ben Hurt" trophy following the "Ben Hur"-like chariot race at Chariot Wars during a three-day Mini Bike Winter Olympics Saturday, Feb. 1, in Portland, Ore. Armed, variously, with all manner of foam-padded apparatus, at least five teams did battle on Saturday under gray skies for the pleasure of hoisting a three-foot-tall, homemade skull-bearing piece of welded junk, called the "Ben Hurt" trophy.
From AP:

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - Looking like punk gladiators, teams of young adults on junk bikes pulling chariots made of junk parts frenetically chased each other around a makeshift arena, slamming each other and swinging away with foam clubs.

Spectators tossed beer cans, flour and smoke grenades. Firecrackers popped and obscenities flew during the battle, called the "Ben Hurt Chariot Wars."

And then, toward sundown, the grown-ups arrived. Seven police cars pulled up and told all 400 or so people they had to leave because they were trespassing on railroad property. They complied. But the contest was over anyway.

Click here to read the full story about the "Ben Hurt Chariot Wars" in Portland.
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1 comment
Is that Booger from "Revenge of the Nerds"?
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17
Feb
2012
1:39pm, EST
100-year-old cyclist sets record for one-hour ride in Switzerland
Denis Balibouse / Reuters
Cyclist Robert Marchand of France celebrates after setting a world record for cycling non-stop for one hour, in the over 100- year old category, at the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) velodrome in Aigle, Switzerland on Friday. Marchand, born November 26, 1911, cycled 125 laps around the 200 metre indoor track - a distance of 24.251 km (15 miles) - to set the record.
Sebastien Feval / AFP - Getty Images
French cycling enthusiast and centenarian Robert Marchand (2L) is helped by coaches Magali Humbert (L) and Gerard Mistler before setting a new record.
Denis Balibouse / Reuters
Trainer Robert Mistler (C) encourages cyclist Robert Marchand of France (L) next to trainer Magali Humbert-Perret during his attempt to set a world record for cycling non-stop for one hour.
Sebastien Feval / AFP - Getty Images
French cycling enthusiast and centenarian Robert Marchand rides around the track.
People younger than Mr. Marchand have pedaled this same distance more quickly, though the records are grouped according to type of bicycle. For upright bicycles similar to Marchand's, the record is just over 30 miles in one hour, while for faired recumbent bikes, the record is an astounding 56 miles.
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2 comments
No one, that's why it's a record.
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30
Dec
2011
11:29pm, EST
Taiwan cyclists set to break world record
Pichi Chuang / Reuters
People cycle their bicycles at the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall in Taipei Dec. 31, 2011.

From Reuters:

Hundreds of thousands people participated in a bike ride around Taiwan on New Year's Eve as part of an attempt to achieve a Guinness World Record of the largest bicycle parade in the world. Various groups began from 1000 starting points around the island and cycled clock-wise towards the next starting point within one hour.

See previous world record PhotoBlog posts and our 2012 Guinness World Record slideshow.
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2
Sep
2011
2:53pm, EDT
Cyclists race in northwestern Spain
Jose Manuel Vidal / EPA
A pack of cyclists ride during the 13th stage of the Spanish Vuelta cycling race which was held between Sarria and Ponferrada, northwestern Spain, on 2 September, 2011.
See more cycling images in Photoblog.
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9
Jun
2011
3:49pm, EDT
Cyclists on penny farthings gather in London
Olivia Harris / Reuters
Penny Farthing riders assemble with their bikes at Potters Fields in London June 9, 2011. The riders who have ridden from Paris will race in The London Nocturne on Saturday.
Until bicycles started using chains, this was the fastest way to pedal around. Here's the Wikipedia article about penny farthings.
Dozens of riders will race the bicycles, which were popular in the 19th century. TODAY.com's Dara Brown reports.
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11
May
2011
2:43pm, EDT
Muhammed Muheisen / AP
A Pakistani man riding a motocycle pulls two others on bicycles loaded with wood along a road in Islamabad, Pakistan, Wednesday, May 11, 2011. The U.S. raid that killed Osama bin Laden gave Pakistan's weak civilian government a rare chance to wrest some power away from an influential military establishment that suddenly faced unusual public criticism over its failure to detect the al-Qaida leader and prevent the foreign incursion.
Motorcyclist tows two people hauling loads on bicycles in Pakistan
By John Brecher
Steering a loaded bike one-handed at motorcycle speed takes some concentration.
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26
Apr
2011
3:12pm, EDT
DOMINIC FAVRE / EPA
An unidentified cyclist prepares for the race prior to the prologue, a 3,0 km race against the clock, at the 65th Tour de Romandie UCI ProTour cycling race in Martigny, Switzerland, 26 April 2011.
Bicyclist drags wheeled luggage before race start
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12
Apr
2011
6:50am, EDT
Where did I park the bike?
Patrick Pleul / AFP - Getty Images
An employee looks out of a window of a bicycle shop and rental station, which has been decorated with some hundred old bikes attached to the front of the building, on April 6. The installation in Altlandsberg, eastern Germany was set up to attract tourists touring the Brandenburg area by bike.
1 comment
typical ignorance and lack of respect driven by greed. We in the West sometimes expect a higher degree of spiritual development in the land of Lao Tse, Confucious and Kwai Chang Kane. But, no. The love of the power of money can easily displace compassion,empathy and common sense. In any culture.
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5
Apr
2011
7:57am, EDT
A bicycle accident in Beijing
Frederic J. Brown / AFP - Getty Images
Bystanders gather to watch as a policeman takes a closer look at an injured man lying on the road beside his electric bicycle in Beijing on April 5. It was not known whether the cyclist was hit by a vehicle which fled the scene, or if he collapsed on his own, but an ambulance arrived moments later to take the injured man away.
Frederic J. Brown / AFP - Getty Images
An injured cyclist is taken away by paramedics in Beijing on April 5.
By David R Arnott, NBC News
China's roads are among the world's most dangerous, with widespread flouting of traffic laws leaving almost 70,000 people dead from road accidents in 2009, or around 190 fatalities a day, according to police statistics cited by AFP.
As long ago as 2001, Philip Pan of the Washington Post declared that the bicycle was no longer king of the road in China. Pan recounted how "China's fascination with the bicycle began in the late 19th century, when two Americans pedaled from Constantinople to Peking on a pair of Humber bicycles with diamond-pattern frames. Crowds greeted them in village after village, describing the strange vehicle as 'a foreign horse' and 'a little mule that you drive by the ears and kick in the sides to make him go'."
A few weeks ago, Evan Osnos of the New Yorker revisited Pan's analysis in a blog post on his own experiences riding the bike lanes of Beijing.
4 comments
The lanes are still dangerous. If your dead then the cameras do not really matter... The laws are less relaxed on traffic violations and the fines are very low compared to what someone can pay for a car. ($30 or so)
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25
Mar
2011
3:42pm, EDT
Koen Van Weel / EPA
A BMX rider tries the new track during the opening of the Olympic BMX track at the National Sports Centre Papendal in Arnhem, the Netherlands on March 25 2011. This BMX track is a replica of London's BMX track.
BMX racer rides the ups and downs of a new track in the Netherlands
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31
Jan
2011
7:39pm, EST
Lefteris Pitarakis / AP
A man rides his bicycle with bread on his head in Cairo, Egypt, Monday Jan. 31, 2011. Police and garbage collectors appeared on the streets of Cairo Monday morning and subway stations reopened after soldiers and neighborhood watch groups kept the peace in many districts overnight.
Man carries bread on a bicycle in Cairo
By John Brecher
This appears to be an everyday trip - I wonder how much this person's life has been affected by the events in Cairo.
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12
Jan
2011
4:27am, EST
Ajay Verma / Reuters
A man rides his bicycle near a replica of the Eiffel Tower during heavy fog on a cold morning in the northern Indian city of Chandigarh, January 12.
Cycling by an Eiffel Tower replica in Chandigarh, India

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